Llamas get into Machu Picchu for free
Machu Picchu TrekAt 5.30am in the morning we were picked up from our hostel full of excitement and anticipation. We said brief salutations to the other people in our group and settled into the two hour bus journey to the starting point at kilometre 82, at 2380 metres. Rich and me were the only two in our group of 16 who were carrying our own equipment...much to their horror and amusement.
The group set off walking at around 10.00am, this was the reputedly 'easy' day, only 14kms!!. It was sunny and hot and people's spirits were high. The journey took us alongside the Urubamba river past some Inca terraces. Two people in the group had food poisoning so were constantly stopping in order to be sick, but they were determined not to be defeated by it. The Chaski (porters) flew past us each sweating with the huge and heavy load they were carrying. At around 1.00pm we stopped and had an amazing two course lunch and a quick siesta before heading off again. The walk in the afternoon was slightly harder as we began to ascend to 3000 metres to the first campsite at Wayllabamba. We arrived late in the afternoon, some of the group were looking tired and seemed worried about tomorrows walk named the 'gingo killer'!
Happy gringos on day one
Some sort of Inca ruin that we passed. (If i paid any attention to the guides, I´d be able to tell you what this was called)
The following day we had to be up early at around 5.00am to set off for the four hour up hill climb to Dead Womans Pass (the gingo killer). Rich and me due to all of our hikes over the past 8 months found the walk not to be as bad as we had expected. At the top (4216 metres) we had amazing views of the valleys on either side. The walk however was not over and after a quick hour and a half down the other side we stopped for another delicious lunch before setting off again for another 2-3 hours mostly up-hill. During this part we saw some amazing Inca ruins at Runkuracay with fantastic views of the Pacaymayo river.
The food was so good, we could only stare at it
This morning we were allowed a lie until 6.30! The views were amazing, it was like being on top of the world as there were blankets of clouds beneath us. This part of the trek was named 'unforgettable' and it didn't disappoint. We descended through the cloud forest into the jungle and the flora and fauna changed into orchids and butterflies. We got to our campsite around lunchtime and were able to have a much needed hot shower. In late afternoon we visited the nearby Inca site Winaywayna which was mind blowing.
The third night's camp site. Bloody marvellous innit?
Today we had to be up at 4.00am for the final part of our trek to Machu Picchu. It was an easy hour walk to the Temple of the Sun which gave us our first views of Machu Picchu, we were stunned by the sight, it was magnificent. We spent the rest of the morning having a tour of the ruins however it started to rain which spoilt it a bit. After the tour we had a couple of hours to kill, I had been disappointed to not been given the chance to ascend up Wayna Picchu which has great views of the ruins but only allows 400 people to ascend each day. Our guide kindly bribed the guards by giving them some sandwiches and Rich, me and two others were allowed to go up. I was so happy!
The postcard shot. Wayna Picchu is the big hunk of rock on the right
We got back to our hotel in Aguas Calientes for lunch at two. We were tired but happy, our friends Craig and Shelley came and met us at our hotel and we spent the rest of the afternoon in the hot springs drinking cocktails, this carried on into the evening. What fun!!
